With the 2012 presidential election still fresh in our minds, I’d like to propose to the little piece of America that reads my column a different approach for voters four years from now.

But let me set the stage first, with a little perspective:

We just witnessed perhaps the most misleading presidential campaigns of modern times. By one estimate, more than a million campaign ads ran on television, nearly all in nine or 10 swing states, mostly containing innuendo and half-truths to advance the candidates’ mudslinging agendas.

One of the most competitive and start-to-finish entertaining Vegas Bowls in years played out on a chilly Saturday at the Herrera Complex.

With a 42-26 victory, the Robertson Cardinals and head coach Leroy Gonzalez wrapped up a District 2-3A championship season and solidified a seeding in the upcoming state playoffs. On the other side, West Las Vegas finished a tough season on an up note with arguably its best offensive effort under first-year head coach Robert Alarcon.

ALBUQUERQUE — Robertson girls’ soccer made its deepest postseason run in program history over the weekend, falling to No. 1 Hope Christian 3-0 in the Class 1A-3A state semifinals Friday at the APS Soccer Complex.

One of the most prolific scoring squads in the state all season, the Lady Cardinals (19-3) were denied a goal against the hometown Huskies, whose defense was key to a 19-win season.

The city of Las Vegas has secured about $1.1 million in financing to upgrade existing water meters so that they no longer need to be read manually.

City Utilities Director Ken Garcia notified the City Council this week that about $825,000 of that funding will be a grant while the remaining $275,000 would be in the form of a zero-percent interest loan.

The funding comes from the New Mexico Finance Authorities Clean Water Revolving Loan Fund.

The Region IV Narcotics Task Force made two marijuana-related arrests recently, one a woman who allegedly mailed pot to an inmate at the county jail and the second a New Mexico Highlands University student accused of selling the drug out of his dorm room.

After years of flip-flopping between parties, New Mexico voters lined up solidly for a second time behind the Democratic Party in this week’s elections, a trend one analyst attributed to the state’s already large and fast-growing Hispanic population.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez and her Republican allies lost ground in the state House of Representatives in the general election but gained seats in the Senate, including ousting a pair of Democratic leaders.

The GOP waged a fierce legislative campaign battle in hopes of knocking off enough Democrats to take control of the House for the first time in nearly 60 years, but unofficial returns suggested the party went the other direction and lost seats.